Grim Christmas in Japan as rising inflation hits travel and party plans: ‘all I want is rest’

Parents say they will spend less on their children’s gifts or cut down on overseas holidays, as rising costs and the uncertain economy take their toll

Surveys show some employees want end-of-year company parties to end early, while others are keen to catch up on sleep after working hard for the whole year

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Christmas decorations in the Yurakucho area of Tokyo, Japan, on Friday. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 12:00pm, 14 Dec 2023

It’s beginning to look a lot like a grim Christmas in Japan. Sharply rising prices for basic foodstuffs mean that the cost of a cake for the festive season is up significantly over last year, while parents say they will spend less on their children’s gifts.

Even the traditional bonenkai, or end-of-year company party, is out of favour, with many people saying they want the evening to end early to avoid spending so much, while employees who have worked gruelling hours in the run-up to the holidays say they plan to spend their time off sleeping in preparation for their return in the New Year.

Only a fraction of Japanese are Christian, but the nation embraced Christmas traditions with gusto decades ago as an economic opportunity. While the decorated trees, baubles and twinkling lights are still much in evidence in stores and restaurants this holiday season, there appears to be less ho, ho, ho in the air.

Shoppers browse at pop-up stores along a street decorated with Christmas lights in the Marunouchi area of Tokyo, Japan, on Friday. Photo: Bloomberg

“My husband’s business has been steady this year, but we don’t know what will happen next year,” said Takako Tomura, a homemaker from Yokohama. “So we have decided to be a little more careful at Christmas.”

An annual party with their friends had been scaled back, she said, and while they had already bought a gift for their daughter, Tomura and her husband had decided not to buy presents for each other.

But the biggest cutback is to their family winter holiday. In the past, they would spend a week in Hawaii, but this year Tomura’s husband is staying in Japan to work while she takes their daughter to South Korea for a long weekend.

“We wanted to go somewhere, but the yen is so weak at the moment and flights and hotel prices are high, so we decided to have a short break instead of going to the beach,” she said. “It will be different and we hope that things are back to normal next year.”